This 16-year-old could be the next Mark Cuban

Here's what the young founder of an eco-friendly shampoo company did to impress the Dallas Mavericks owner.

Billionaire investor Mark Cuban may be brash, but it's not always outspoken entrepreneurs who impress him--it's those who hustle the most.

Benjamin Stern, a 16-year-old from Melbourne, Florida, wowed all the Sharks on Friday's episode of Shark Tank with the pitch for his eco-friendly shampoo company, Nohbo. But it was Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban who was most impressed with the soft-spoken Stern.

Stern fielded plenty of deals but decided to partner with Cuban, who called Stern his "Mini-Me" and offered to invest $100,000 in Nohbo in exchange for 25 percent of the company.

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This 16-year-old could be the next Mark Cuban

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So why the feeding frenzy over a company run by a teenager? While Stern may not have a lot of experience, his work ethic rivals that of some of the adult entrepreneurs that have appeared on the show. When he was 7, he used to buy a box of cookies from Costco and spend the afternoon selling to passersby at the mall.

"He was constantly testing ideas and asking me, 'What do you think of this idea?'" Stern's mother, Karrie Warren, says. "But then he would find that product that he wanted to develop was already in stores."

He came up with the idea for Nohbo after he watched a documentary in biology class about how damaging plastic bottles can be to the environment. He wanted to find a way to cut down on the number of bottles Americans throw away, so he created a shampoo ball that uses a compostable wrapper instead of plastic.

"Ben really did everything on his own," says Warren. "He found everything--he even found the chemist [who developed the Nohbo ball]."

Finally, Stern had come up with an idea that he could turn into an original product--and the Sharks were impressed.

"This could be one of the best things I've seen on Shark Tank," declared Robert Herjavec.

Though Nohbo is still waiting for its patent and has yet to sell a single product, Stern said he got a part-time job to pay for some of Nohbo's initial expenses and cold-emailed Clorox and Hyatt Hotels, among other companies, to pitch them. That elicited applause from Cuban.

Spain's Manuel Foix Robert (L) and Victoria Gomez Gamez pose with their invention, a protective case made with tissue that can be used for food and plants, during the opening day of the 40th International Exhibition of Inventions in Geneva, on April 18, 2012. More than 789 exhibitors from 46 countries are present at one of the world's largest exhibition of the devoted to innovation from April 18th to 22th in Geneva. AFP PHOTO / FABRICE COFFRINI (Photo credit should read FABRICE COFFRINI/AFP/Getty Images)

Germany's Ulli Boehme poses with his invention, the 'Ball Rider' a new sport and leisure vehicle equipped with large balls as wheels, during the opening day of the 40th International Exhibition of Inventions in Geneva, on April 18, 2012. More than 789 exhibitors from 46 countries are present at one of the world's largest exhibition of the devoted to innovation from April 18th to 22th in Geneva. AFP PHOTO / FABRICE COFFRINI (Photo credit should read FABRICE COFFRINI/AFP/Getty Images)

South Korean Lee Beom Seok poses with his invention, a multifonction portable tool for clothing against bacteria, odor, hydratation and can also work as air purifier during the opening day of the 40th International Exhibition of Inventions Geneva, April 18, 2012. The More than 789 exhibitors from 46 countries are present at one of the world's largest exhibition of the devoted to innovation from April 18th to 22th in Geneva. AFP PHOTO / FABRICE COFFRINI (Photo credit should read FABRICE COFFRINI/AFP/Getty Images)

People play in a 'Football Box', an invention for children which allows them to play in a miniature-sized football arena and was invented by Venezuelan Jose Pires Tavares, during the opening day of the 40th International Exhibition of Inventions, in Geneva, on April 18, 2012. The More than 789 exhibitors from 46 countries are present at one of the world's largest exhibition of the devoted to innovation from April 18th to 22th in Geneva. AFP PHOTO / FABRICE COFFRINI (Photo credit should read FABRICE COFFRINI/AFP/Getty Images)

Taiwan's Yong-Fu Chang presents his invention, two teddy bears connected by Wi-Fi via the Internet equipped with microphones and speakers, during the opening day of the 40th International Exhibition of Inventions, in Geneva, on April 18, 2012. More than 789 exhibitors from 46 countries are present at one of the world's largest exhibition of the devoted to innovation from April 18th to 22th in Geneva. AFP PHOTO / FABRICE COFFRINI (Photo credit should read FABRICE COFFRINI/AFP/Getty Images)

Italy's Marco Pagnini presents his invention, a suspender for carrying an umbrella without using hands during opening day of the 40th International Exhibition of Inventions of Geneva, on April 18, 2011. More than 789 exhibitors from 46 countries are present at one of the World's largest exhibition devoted to innovation from April 18th to 22th in Geneva. AFP PHOTO / FABRICE COFFRINI (Photo credit should read FABRICE COFFRINI/AFP/Getty Images)

Andre Piatetsky form the US presents his invention, a treatment hairbrush fitted with a liquid-reservoir that disperse treatment solution over the user's scalp during hair brushing at the opening day of the 40th International Exhibition of Inventions of Geneva, on April 18, 2011. More than 789 exhibitors from 46 countries are present at one of the World's largest exhibition devoted to innovation from April 18th to 22th in Geneva. AFP PHOTO / FABRICE COFFRINI (Photo credit should read FABRICE COFFRINI/AFP/Getty Images)

France's Laurent Helewa poses with his invention, a toilet kit, during the opening day of the 39th International Exhibition of Inventions, on April 6, 2010 in Geneva. Helewa's invention is a foldable and reusable system of a dry, portable disposable toilet designed for nomadic, family or even military use in case there is not a functional toilet nearby. More than 765 exhibitors from 45 countries are present at one of the World's largest exhibition devoted to innovation from April 6th to 10th in Geneva. AFP PHOTO / FABRICE COFFRINI (Photo credit should read FABRICE COFFRINI/AFP/Getty Images)

Taiwan's Juang Ying-Shen poses with her invention, high heels with interchangeable components, during the opening day of the 39th International Exhibition of Inventions, on April 6, 2010 in Geneva. More than 765 exhibitors from 45 countries are present at one of the World's largest exhibition devoted to innovation from April 6th to 10th in Geneva. AFP PHOTO / FABRICE COFFRINI (Photo credit should read FABRICE COFFRINI/AFP/Getty Images)

France's Jean-Marc Batard pose with his children next to his invention, a pyramidal water-saving garden which allows elderly people to garden, during the opening day of the 39th International Exhibition of Inventions, on April 6, 2010 in Geneva. More than 765 exhibitors from 45 countries are present at one of the World's largest exhibition devoted to innovation from April 6 to April 10, in Geneva. AFP PHOTO / FABRICE COFFRINI (Photo credit should read FABRICE COFFRINI/AFP/Getty Images)

TOKYO, JAPAN - JANUARY 6: EXCLUSIVE A urinal that has a video game console above it in the SEGA World complex in Akihabara Electric Town, Tokyo, Japan. For men a stroll to the gents has become a leap into the twenty first century, thanks to the SEGA video games corporation. The company has developed a new entertainment system which is incorporated into a public lavatory. Now rows of peeing men can spend a penny and get a great video game experience while they are at it. The 'Toylet' male urinal video game provides a choice of sumo wrestling, erasing graffiti and dousing an exploding volcano. The 'Toylet' works by a pressure sensor in the base of the urinal measuring the strength and location of the urine stream as it hits the basin. An LCD screen displays the game graphics and rewards the strength, length and accuracy of the pee through a typical video game points system. There are currently no plans for a multiplayer version of the 'Toylet'. (Photo by Matthew Tabaccos / Barcroft Medi / Getty Images)

Southern Taiwan University's Tang Jing-Jou poses with his invention, a billards table with trajectory recording capabilities during the opening day of the 39th International Exhibition of Inventions, on April 6, 2010 in Geneva. The billard table is designed to have sensors and LED indicators under its surface used to record the trajectory of the ball and show the strength in every shot. More than 765 exhibitors from 45 countries are present at one of the World's largest exhibition devoted to innovation from April 6 to 10 in Geneva. AFP PHOTO / FABRICE COFFRINI (Photo credit should read FABRICE COFFRINI/AFP/Getty Images)

Frenchman Dimitri Gauer poses with his invention, the 'crustacean peeler', during the opening day of the 36th International Exhibition of Inventions, on April 1, 2009 in Geneva. The device peels sea food, facilitating their ingestion for diners. More than 710 exhibitors from 45 countries are present at the exhibition, one of the World's largest devoted to innovation. AFP PHOTO / FABRICE COFFRINI (Photo credit should read FABRICE COFFRINI/AFP/Getty Images)

LONDON - AUGUST 14: In this photo illustration a moustach guard is displayed at the British Library on August 14, 2008 in London, England. Over 50 ingenious inventions and gadgets have gone on display at the British Library. (Photo illustration by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)